Need an account?

Print subscribers

Non-subscribers

Zoom boom

Marlborough conducts business amid Covid-19

Posted
Wednesday, May 20, 2020 12:29 pm

By Mark Reynolds

Supervisor Al Lanzetta said he has been handling much of the town’s business from his home due to the covid-19 pandemic. He said this has been possible because of the support of the town hall staff, “who are doing a remarkable job under difficult circumstances.” In particular, he thanked his secretary Tina Rosa and Budget Director Christine Wilklow for all of their help.

In the past few weeks Lanzetta has been in contact with the town attorneys to coordinate the introduction and adoption of new town laws, the Harbor Management Law and the LWRP Consistency Review law and the Local Waterfront Revitalization Plan.

Lanzetta also conferred with the town’s lawyer to develop a resolution of an upcoming timber harvest that is on town property. In addition, he is nearly finished with the details of an agreement with Nexamp for a solar location at the town landfill.

Lanzetta said Chestnut Petroleum was working to get their drainage work done before the repaving or Route 9W started, “and unfortunately they hit our new sewer line and damaged it.” He said the company that installed the line is using a special method to fix it.

Lanzetta held a Zoom meeting with fellow Councilman Howard Baker, John DeMarco, John Behan and Seth McKee, of Scenic Hudson to discuss waterfront development.

Lanzetta said on May 9th the Marlborough volunteers for Project Resilience delivered 280 meals to town residents in need of assistance. The town also worked with the Rondout Food Shelter to help deliver 90 bags of groceries and toiletry items.

“That project [Resilience] is winding down and we don’t know what it’s exactly going to look like because the United Way’s $2 million I think we’ve gone through that and I think they’ve done 100,000 deliveries of food to our seniors and to people that are in need.”

Lanzetta has been in contact with Deputy County Executive Mark Rider to keep abreast of the Covid-19 pandemic and thanked County Legislator Tom Corcoran for also keeping the public informed on his website about this health crisis. The Supervisor is working with Highway Superintendent on a strategy to reopen his department on May 18 but his workforce will wear masks and observe proper social distancing.

Lanzetta said they are also keeping an eye on the needs of seniors, especially on the communities of Jenny’s Garden and Milton Harvest, during this difficult time.

Construction Boom Expected

Building Inspector Tom Corcoran said there has been a downturn in local construction because of covid-19.

“Obviously we slowed down because you can only have a single individual on a property unless it was for an emergency, like a roof repair, or it fell within the Governor’s Executive Order that they are allowed to work,” he said, adding that he has inspected the trailer parks and the local junk yards. “We’ve been busy in the Building Department; on Monday, Wednesday and Friday Penny is in and I’m in five days a week and doing field inspections on Tuesday and Thursday.”

Corcoran predicts there will be an increase in building in the area because people will be moving out of New York City and come north to the Hudson Valley.

“Obviously this is an attractive area like it was in 2005, 2006 and 2007 when we were building over 100 houses a year. I anticipate that boom happening over the next year or two; I really think it’s going to happen,” he said.

Police Report

Chief Gerald Cocozza summarized his department’s activities during the last month: personal injury auto accidents 3; fatalities none; property damage accidents 11 for a total of 14 for the month. His department issued 9 summons; no parking violations and total blotter entries of 1,264 with 4 arrests. He pointed out to the board that the system his department is now using, “requires a blotter entry for anything where the old one didn’t, so any security checks or things like that, which weren’t put in the old system are now in the new system. It allows us to track what we do a lot more of. Though it seems like we’re doing a tremendous amount in terms of numbers, it’s the same stuff we were doing before, we’re just tracking it better now.”

Cocozza said they received 1,901 calls for service and there were 8 hours overtime for full-time dispatch and 24 hours of overtime for part-time dispatch. His department traveled 12,170 miles, resulting in a fuel consumption of 1,049 gallons.

Cocozza touched upon the Memorial Day “Drive” celebration that is scheduled for 1 pm on Sunday, May 24.

“It will be a totally in the car drive and nobody will be outside except the spectators who have been asked to keep social distancing,” he said. “I don’t expect to see large crowds together but probably spread out along the route. It should be nice.”

The members of the Town of Marlborough Highway Department, Town of Marlborough Police Department along with both the Marlboro and Milton Fire Departments will be parading along 9W. It will start at the intersection of Milton Turnpike and proceed south with a turnaround at Absolutely Automotive near the town’s southern border and then return to the starting point in Milton. Parking will be along 9W, on the shoulders of the roadway. Cocozza said if anyone needs more protective masks they should call his department at 845-795-2181 “and we’ll make arrangements to put them on the door for you. We have about 500 left, so spread the word.” He said they were made by the Hanes Clothing Company, that recently began making masks for health care workers.

“They haven’t been tremendous or a problem; basically we remind them of the Governor’s order to stay apart. Either they don masks or they spread apart and it’s been pretty good and we’ve had only a few complaints,” he said.

Cocozza said some of the complaints are from New York State, pointing out that some businesses are operating without masks, protection or social distancing inside of their stores.

Two deli’s owners were spoken to and they made the needed adjustments.

“They denied not having the proper PPE and at the time we did the inspection they did,” he said.

The board unanimously adopted the Town of Marlborough Local Waterfront Revitalization Program that includes the Consistency Review Law and the Harbor Management Law. Supervisor Lanzetta will submit the LWRP to the New York State Secretary of State for approval pursuant to the Waterfront Revitalization of Coastal Areas and Inland Waterway Act.

Lanzetta said adopting these resolutions, “will help us with the state to get our LWRP which gives us a little heads up as far as points with our Consolidated Funding Application [CFA] and other different grants that the town would like to go for.”

Last week Michael Cucchiara and Dallas Manson, of Nexamp, gave a presentation to the Marlborough Town Board on a proposed lease agreement for a solar photovoltaic system to be constructed on 9 fenced …